When firefighters risk their lives putting out fires, they’re heroes, but when they try to prevent fires from breaking out in Nova Scotia, apparently, that’s where some people draw the line.
Jeff Evely deliberately violated the Nova Scotia government’s restrictions banning activities in the woods due to a heightened risk of wildfires. He sought out a $28,000 fine just to challenge it in court and prove the restrictions go “too far.”
So what makes the restrictions so absurd that someone would take a $28,000 fine just to complain about them? Nothing. What’s absurd is that someone would see fires burning across the country and only be concerned about themselves.
Sure, the restrictions are extensive. Steering clear of Crown and private woods until Oct. 15 is a big lifestyle change for many. But I don’t see how it can be helped. Forest fires can start anywhere, no matter how small the wooded area, and no one can predict when or how.
In 2020, California experienced fires that destroyed 20 buildings and killed one firefighter — all caused by a gender reveal gone wrong. In British Columbia this August, fire spread through wildland, allegedly caused by fireworks set off during peak wildfire season. A majority of wildfires are started this way, by human negligence or recklessness. Canada Wildfire reports humans are responsible for “more than half of all wildfires in Canada.”
So it’s not as if the Nova Scotia government has put these restrictions in place to target hikers and specifically make Evely’s life miserable. They’re in place to keep people safe.
If the woods reopened, who’s to say a hiker wouldn’t toss their burning cigarette on the ground? Or that the friction from an ATV’s wheels wouldn’t light a spark that goes unnoticed? The last thing this province needs right now is an idiot in the woods.
Those complaining about their activities being restricted believe they are an exception — that they are not a risk to the woods because they don’t want to be. That’s not how fires are prevented. They’re prevented by listening to professionals and staying clear of the woods when the Department of Natural Resources and fire chiefs implore. It’s that simple.
A walk wouldn’t feel so important if you became the cause of a fire that destroys your neighbours’ properties — or takes lives. This “it wouldn’t happen to me” attitude is selfish and dangerous. It puts the forests, animals and people of Nova Scotia at risk.
So whether Evely successfully appeals his fine or not, I know where I stand: not in the woods.
